Managing urban wildlife is conference topic

Goal is to help Ohio cities manage increasing conflicts

The conflicts between people in urban areas and animals such as geese, deer and coyotes (shown in photo) are on the rise.

Submitted photo

COLUMBUS – A Nov. 15 event at The Ohio State University aims to help Ohio’s cities, villages and suburbs limit conflicts between people and wildlife, from deer to geese to coyotes.

Organizers say the 2016 annual conference of the Ohio Community Wildlife Cooperative is for local government officials, community leaders, municipal planners and others. Its theme is “Living with Wildlife and Resolving Conflicts in Ohio.”

Urban wildlife conflicts are increasing, and so are the challenges for local governments in managing them, said co-organizer Marne Titchenell, wildlife program specialist with Ohio State’s College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (CFAES). The headline of a recent story by the Associated Press, for instance, said U.S. cities are “increasingly dealing” with the problem of “messy goose poop.”

One of those cities is Solon, located near Cleveland. The city’s manager, Greg Miller, will speak on its efforts to grapple with geese as part of the conference program.

National urban coyote expert

Also on the agenda is “Urban Coyote Conflict Resolution for Communities” by Stan Gehrt, a CFAES wildlife scientist who’s done groundbreaking research on Chicago’s urban coyotes. He’s been interviewed by, among others, National Geographic, the Wall Street Journal, the Los Angeles Times and PBS, including for an episode of Nature called “Meet the Coywolf.”

“Deer Sterilization” by Robert Rack and Laurie Briggs of the Cincinnati area’s Clifton Deer Sterilization Working Group.

“Deer Management: Implementation and City Examples” by Geoff Westerfield of the Ohio Division of Wildlife (DOW).

Nov. 7 registration deadline

Registration for the conference is $35. The cost includes breakfast, lunch, a packet of information and a free parking permit. The deadline to register is Nov. 7. Registration and other details, including a link to online registration, are at go.osu.edu/OCWC16.

For more information, visit the conference website at go.osu.edu/OCWC16 or call 614-688-3421.

Who’s behind it

The cooperative is a statewide partnership involving CFAES, DOW, the Wildlife Services program of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Great Parks of Hamilton County, the Lake Erie Allegheny Partnership for Biodiversity, the City of Cleveland Mayor’s Office of Sustainability, and the City of Dublin.

The conflicts between people in urban areas and animals such as geese, deer and coyotes (shown in photo) are on the rise.

http://urbanacitizen.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/web1_Image-of-coyote-in-grass.jpgThe conflicts between people in urban areas and animals such as geese, deer and coyotes (shown in photo) are on the rise. Submitted photo